


An Unexpected Tail

by ChamirianBels



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Drama & Romance, Eventual Romance, M/M, Oil Spills, Underwater Civilization, human!keith, merfolk
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-18
Updated: 2019-06-12
Packaged: 2019-07-08 03:44:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15922217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChamirianBels/pseuds/ChamirianBels
Summary: Keith lives with his best friend Shiro who's like a brother to him. Shiro runs his family's company while Keith goes to college and tries to live the life he's grown bored with. Soon enough, Keith meets Lance and doesn't realize how much his life will change because of the tanned man. New recurring dreams come to him at night foreshadowing decisions he will come across in the future; possible relationships either form, hold strong, or wither away. Keith doesn't realize what he's swimming into as he gets closer to those around him in his life, and has a choice to help save one or help the other destroy a beautiful civilization he will come to love.Be careful what you wish for because Life sometimes gives what you want only for you to suffer through the oncoming choices needed to be made next. Keith learns this the hard way.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a story idea that's been swimming through my pool of ideas for a while. I've been slowly pushing the chapters out for this story, determined to finish it before actually publishing it. I will also be publishing it on fanfiction.net like most of my other stories - except my Rise of the Guardian stories. So, without further ado, I hope you enjoy my first try at a Voltron: Legendary Defender fic.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith runs into Lance and gets a not so nice first impression.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I haven't done much for this story yet. Only have four chapters written out. I want this to be posted though to see the reaction from you guys. I'll only update this one when I've gotten close to 8-10 chapters written. I have plans for this story and everything, I just haven't written the chapters out yet because I need to think about how I can get to the next thing that should happen before everything spills out of the pot. FYI, I might make a lot of water/ocean like puns because of what this fic deals with. You have been warned. Hope you don't suffer too much from lame puns. BDc

            Keith shivers in the night air, hunching himself inside his midriff jacket. His pouting face lingers as memories from an hour ago pop up once more. He had a fight with his best friend, Shiro, a man who is like his brother. They get along well but sometimes they don’t agree with everything. The pale skinned man sighs as he shakes his head, forcing his mind to blank for all of four seconds.

            He needs some kind of release, or an escape from reality for just a few minutes. It wouldn’t hurt. He could just daze off and imagine another world, one full of adventure. Maybe a universe where he’s actually needed, when he’s not lonely all the time. A world where he has a family that won’t judge him on his looks, who he likes, where he’s from, what his history is.

            A world comes into his mind with six figures. One he recognizes instantly as Shiro. He smiles a little as random scenes play out. Out of the other five, one of them seems to be a person that loves picking a fight with him. They’re tall, lanky, kind of a goof-ball, but Keith feels they mean well and is secretly smart. Another two, one short and the other big boned, seem incredibly smart and jovial, but he doesn’t know how close he could possibly be with them. The last two taller people have ears that are not human, probably elfish but not at the same time. A small family, but one Keith probably wouldn’t mind having.

            As Keith dreams on, he’s unaware of where he’s walking. He bumps into someone, knocking him out of his slightly happy daydream, and scowls.

            “Watch where you’re going, mullet.” The guy he bumped into scowls at him.

            Keith feels like talking back but bites his tongue. Whoever the guy is, he’s not worth it. He just keeps on walking, until a hand pulls him back by his elbow.

            “Dude, you’re not going to apologize? How rude can you get?”

            “Whoa, chill out, man.” Another voice speaks up as a big boned guy rests a hand on the taller thin one’s shoulder. “Just let it go, Lance.”

            “Not until he apologizes!”

            “Why apologize when you could have easily avoided bumping into me, stupid.” Keith bites out.

            “What’d you say?!” Lance glares, grip tightening around Keith’s elbow. “The nerve of you hu-.”

            A shorter person comes up and slaps their hand over Lance’s mouth, pulling him down to their height so they’re seeing eye-to-eye. “Lance, let go of his arm.” At the order, the man stubbornly lets go. Keith shakes his arm a little, about to continue walking but feels someone holding the back of his jacket. “Keith, you are half at fault here.”

            Flinching at the sound of his name, he sighs and looks at the short girl. “Pidge, I’m not apologizing.”

            Lance mumbles something into Pidge’s hand with wide eyes full of surprise. The girl grins. “I could tell Shiro you’re being rude to strangers without reason.” She lets him go and examines her fingernails. “I mean, unless you want to apologize to our friend here.”

            “Who also needs to apologize,” the other person states. He eyes Lance seriously. “Lance?”

            The man huffs but admits defeat. Pidge finally uncovers his mouth, and he stands tall, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m not apologizing until he apologizes first.”

            Keith’s deep purple eyes glare into a smoldering blue. They silently fight with their eyes for a minute before Pidge groans. “Get over yourselves already!” She raises her arms up in exasperation. “I’m so not in a mood for this. Come on, Hunk.” She waves the other guy over to follow.

            When the two start leaving without him, Lance panics a bit. He swears and glowers. “I’m not apologizing. Better believe I won’t forget this.” He uncrosses his arms and chases the other two. “Wait up, guys!”

            The black haired man watches them go, sighing and stuffing his hands into his pockets. He turns around and starts walking again, this time thinking about Pidge’s friends he never saw before. He heard about Hunk a few times when the techy girl would visit and chat about her experiments the other helped her with. He vaguely remembers her talking about a Lance, but the Lance he remembers is nothing like the one he met. Not to mention that she neglected to inform him how handsome the dark skinned man is.

            An immediate blush appears on his face at his thoughts. He shakes his head and sighs, brushing a hand through his hair. “I think I’ve been out long enough,” he mutters to no one. He soon takes a turn and walks back home to his most likely worried friend.

**An Unexpected Tail**

            Keith’s not surprised when he sees Shiro pacing in front of the door. He closes it behind him with a sigh, looking to the side as he knows what to expect from his friend.

            As soon as the door clicks shut, Shiro instantly comes over with a neutral face but eyes full of concern. “Where were you?”

            “Out.” Keith shrugs as he takes off his shoes. “Was trying to clear my head.”

            “You didn’t get into a fight, did you?” Shiro looks him over without laying a hand on the other.

            He thinks about that. “Not a physical one.” That was the truth, but he still got into a small fight.

            The taller man sighs, closing his eyes to calm down before opening them up again. “At least you’re safe.” He pats Keith’s shoulder, squeezing it as he usually does. His kind of affection. He smiles at the shorter man. “So, who was it this time? The poor soul to receive your verbal wrath?”

            Keith rolls his eyes as he walks past Shiro. “Some friend of Pidge’s. A stupid guy.” He tosses off his jacket onto the back of the couch before flopping onto one of the cushions. “We bumped into each other and he kind of overreacted, but whatever.” He shrugs.

            Shiro sits next to him, leaning forward on his knees with his elbows. “How’s Pidge?”

            “She…” Keith trails off as he remembers how she acted earlier. “She seems kind of off today. Maybe you should give her a call?” The younger man grins a little with the thought of Papa Bear Shiro giving Pidge a call. “She might relax if you talk to her.”

            He nods with a hum, a grin finally appearing on his face. “So, did you only fight with that fellow?”

            Rolling his eyes, Keith lightly shoves the other. “Quit it. I don’t check out  _every_ guy I meet.”

            “No, but it doesn’t hurt.” Shiro shrugs, standing up again so he can stretch out his right arm a little. It creaks a little as it expands slightly then rests once he’s done stretching. “I should have Pidge look at this soon, anyway. Just so I know it’s all good.” He hits his mechanical arm lightly with a knuckle.

            “Is it giving you problems?” Keith stares at it in wonder, glancing up at his brother. “Usually it’s not. Did you pull it too much?”

            “Well, possibly. I had to catch my car from falling down on a worker today at the garage.”

            “Oh god, are they okay?” Keith stands up in worry, doing the same as Shiro did to him earlier when he came back home. “Did you stress out your shoulder?”

            Shiro chuckles. “He’s fine. I mean, he was lucky I was there with him to let him know what’s wrong with Black, but still. I haven’t seen those raisers malfunction like that before.” He hums in thought before shaking his head. “Anyway, I did feel an odd pull so I should have her take a look.”

            The shorter man nods, sighing through his nose. “Okay. So, did you still get her fixed?”

            “Yeah, it was a small thing. Was in and out quick.” Shiro walks around his brother and heads to the kitchen. “I’m sorry about earlier.”

            “No, I’m sorry.” Keith follows him, watching the other grab a drink from the refrigerator. “You were only concerned about me. It’s nothing to be sorry about.”

            A chuckle comes out of the older man. “Seems cooling off your head really does work.” He teases, walking by and ruffling up Keith’s hair. He laughs when the other pouts and swats his hand away. “Let’s get some rest. We both have busy days tomorrow.”

            “You do,” Keith mumbles, fixing his hair as best he can. “I’m just a college student while you’re CEO of Shirogane Enterprises.”

            “Don’t remind me,” Shiro moans out before sighing. “All those meetings tomorrow. I’m not sure how I can stand it.”

            Keith smiles at the childish side he always sees when with Shiro. The complainer at home and diligent worker at the office. “You'll get through it. You always do.” He pats his friend’s shoulder encouragingly. “Goodnight, Shiro.”

            “Sleep tight, Keith.” Shiro waves as he grabs a laptop from the kitchen table and opens it up to work some more before turning in.

            Keith walks to his room and hums a tune from one of his favorite instrumental songs. Entering his room, he doesn’t bother with turning the light on and goes straight to his bed. He flops on top of it and releases a long sigh. Moving his head to the side, he stares at his bedside table with a picture of himself, Shiro, Matt, and Pidge when they were younger. He smiles a little, remembering the days when those three helped him realize that people did care about him. Even after being abandoned by his mother as a baby and losing his father at a young age, he found another family to be with.

            Closing his eyes, Keith slowly falls asleep, worries of the next day in the back of his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not beta-ed so there might be mistakes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith goes through his daily routine. Interesting thing is he keeps bumping into a certain man he can't really tolerate yet.

            The salty water licks his skin as he sits on the surfboard, letting each wave move him further out to sea. Keith’s violet eyes gaze out at the horizon as he sits on the board. He’s balanced though he doesn’t know how. He’s never surfed before. Maybe just sitting on the board is just really easy. His eyes glance down at himself, seeing he’s only wearing red swim trunks and the surfboard itself matches with a red and white pattern. His head slowly looks up as he takes in the sky transitioning from day to night. Half the sky is littered with stars, navy blue crossing into black, and the other half is a pastel purple gradient into light-blue. Neither the sun or moon is out but there’s a light source which causes him to see everything around him easily.

            A splash in the distance forces Keith to glance in the direction of day. He squints, eyes trying to pick up anything out of the ordinary. He doesn’t see anything but keeps staring in the direction. Soon enough, a figure hops out of the water, arched up and back down into a dive. This figure is heading towards him.

            Keith’s heart races as he realizes this. He instantly lays flat against his surfboard and paddles his arms in the opposite direction. Panic grips him hard as he swims from the unknown, but something soon stops him. A voice. One he’s heard before but he doesn’t know where. He chances a glance over his shoulder, seeing the head of the figure, stationary, shake in a gesture. It waves its arms in the air, yelling towards him. His ears hear the voice but do not pick up the words. He tries to make out what the thing is telling him, but a shadow looms over him, taking his focus.

            Gazing up towards the night, he sees a massive wave heading towards him. In the wave are multiple figures. Ferocious shadows. His heart stops just for a moment as he realizes that he swam right under it. His eyes widen when he notices one of the most feared creatures of the water ready to jump on him.

            He closes his eyes and braces for impact.

**An Unexpected Tail**

            Keith gasps for air as he shoots up from his bed, sitting as he controls his breathing. He clenches his eyes shut, hand pressing to his temple for pressure. The dream he woke up from slowly slips into the back of his mind, blurring out and fizzling into black. He tries to pull it back, tries to remember any part of the dream. All he remembers is the water. The water engulfing him and something trying to warn him.

            Shaking his head, he peeks over his shoulder and sees his digital clock’s red numbers blaring the time. It’s still too early for him to go to class. He sighs, slouching back on his bed. He stares at the ceiling, remembering more bits and pieces of the dream, wondering just what it could mean. He ponders over the many kinds of interpretations, one being that something from the light scares him into the dark. A good opportunity makes him turn away in fright and fall into the abyss. A warning of a possible feeling he has. Nothing comes to mind for any of those top interpretations. He willingly lets the dream go to be forgotten.

            An hour goes by and he hears Shiro walk through the apartment. Keith hums, figuring he could join his friend for breakfast and send him off to work. He peels himself away from his sheets and gets up, yawning as he exits his room and walks down the short hall towards the kitchen.

            Shiro hears him come in and raises his eyebrows. “You’re up early,” he states as he grabs something quick to put together. Cereal seems to be his choice for this morning. “Did you have another dream wake you up?”

            Keith nods, plopping down on to one of the kitchen chairs. He yawns again, rubbing his face so he can fight the sleep his body begs him to go back to. “Unfortunately.”

            “Was it the same one?” Shiro reaches for two bowls instead of one, making breakfast for both of them.

            “No. It was a different one. Weirder than the rest.” The raven haired man leans over the table and rests his head there. “I have no clue what it means, either. I have one common idea but I’m not sure.”

            “Talk to me about it?”

            “Mm. Later.”

            Keith moves his head so his chin rests on the table, staring at the wood as he thinks. He doesn’t understand why he has the rare dreams that pop up and he can remember. It’s been going on since he was seven, after his father passed. Usually he has dreamless nights but when he has a dream, he instantly tries to find out what it means. Most of his dreams wrap around the ideas of stress, loneliness, nervousness, temptation, and crippling fear. This recent one felt different to him, though. It wasn’t just about fear. It deals with something about choice.

            “Here,” Shiro whispers as he places a bowl in front of Keith. He sits down with his own and begins eating. “I might come home late tonight.”

            “Okay.” Keith sits up and starts eating. “Will you be seeing Pidge soon?”

            “Tonight,” he answers. “I talked with her last night. She wanted to apologize for yesterday’s encounter. She’s been staying up late working on Rover II’s updates along with a paper, and she didn’t get her coffee that day.”

            “That explains it.” Keith chuckles a little, slowly eating his cereal. “She wasn’t her usual raring-to-go-and-experiment self.”

            They sit in comfortable silence after Keith’s comment. Once Shiro finishes eating, he sets out for work wishing Keith a good day. The latter waves and decides to do his morning routine before preparing for his classes. He goes to his room, changes into a tank and shorts, then heads on out towards the gym.

            For a good hour and fifteen minutes Keith is at the gym. He runs the treadmill for thirty minutes, punches the sandbag for fifteen, does some crunches and push-ups for five minutes, relaxes for ten minutes then changes into some speedo swim trunks in the locker room. He enters the pool room and sets his towel on a chair at the side. He grabs his goggles and spits in them before putting them on as he goes to the jump boards. He sets himself up, crouches, readies, then jumps into the water. He does five laps before he decides to wade in the water a little bit.

            He stares at the ceiling for a moment before closing his eyes. Keith wills the dream from the morning to come back so he can try to remember more pieces. Being in water should help, he thinks. In a way it does, but he doesn’t get enough time to think on it long.

            “You’re supposed to be swimming, not just floating there.”

            The raven haired man jolts a little, not used to people coming in while he swims at the gym. He positions himself up so he can see the person who’s there and frowns when he sees Lance. He attempts not to check the man out who’s in a matching pair of skin tight speedo trunks for swimming. Instead of a red curved line on the thighs like Keith’s, there’s a blue line.

            “I was swimming but decided to wade a little.” Keith rolls his eyes as he swims to the ladder. “Usually I’m alone to do so, but since you’re here, I’ll leave.” He hoists himself out of the water, carefully walking over to his towel only to see it gone. “Where-?” Suddenly, his towel is thrusted into his vision. He blinks and looks at it only to see Lance offering it to him.

            The tanned man tries for a small smile. “Here. You should go dry off so you don’t get sick.” It’s a sincere comment but Keith can see behind his eyes the small irritation from yesterday still there.

            “Thanks,” Keith softly says as he takes his towel. He slips his sandals on that were next to the chair he set his towel on and glances over his shoulder to see Lance setting himself up on the jump board. His violet eyes watches the other man prepare then jump into the water. A flash of the dream bursts into his mind as Lance begins swimming. Keith shakes his head, thinking that the figure couldn’t be this man. They’ve just met yesterday, why is he dreaming about him?

            The raven haired man shakes his head as he starts wiping himself down with his towel. He forces himself to leave the pool room and changes. He soon leaves the gym and realizes that he has to hurry up for himself to make it to his first class in time. He jogs home, takes a nice hot shower, puts clean clothes on, and then starts walking to the college campus.

            As time slowly goes on for Keith, he soon enters his last class for the day before he can head on home. He enters the classroom and sees Pidge where she usually sits. This time she’s not alone.

            “Hey, Pidge.” Keith nods as he takes the free seat to her right. His violet eyes glance over at the other two sitting beside her. “When did you two start coming to this class?”

            “Oh, well, Pidge said that this class would be interesting and right up my alley.” Hunk, if Keith remembers correctly, smiles sheepishly. “She said that I could sit in without it being any trouble.”

            “And Lance is just here because he can’t stand being alone,” Pidge states with a roll of her eyes, grinning slightly. “He’d whine if we left him at Hunk’s place.”

            “Not true.” Lance scowls at the playful jab. “I’m just curious to see more of what you two are so interested in. That and I can check out some nice ladies.” He smirks as he makes eye contact with one further down the classroom and winks.

            Keith sighs as he hears some giggles a few rows down. “Well, Hunk can stay. Lance has no business here if he’s here to just flirt with girls.” He sets his satchel down next to him, pulling out his notebook for class.

            “I’ll have you know that flirting isn’t everything I do, mullet.”

            “Right. You also like to swim. Probably just to be impressive to the girls.” Keith doesn’t know why he holds some animosity against a man he doesn’t know. First impressions may be everything but he tries to not let that deter any possible relationships. Right now, he just finds Lance irritating.

            “It’s not just women I like wooing,” Lance mumbles, crossing his arms as he tries to hold back his own irritation.

            That makes Keith raise an eyebrow as he glances at the other. He doesn’t say anything, just stares for a moment before focusing on the professor. When class starts, Keith finds himself enjoying Hunk’s excitement added with Pidge’s enthusiasm for the class. He also can’t help but stare at the bored looking man he saw in the morning. Reading his face, it seems Lance couldn’t understand everything that was said, but he smiles for the other two. Maybe Lance isn’t all that bad a guy. He’s not just saying that after hearing the man hint at possibly being bisexual. No, he’s thinking that because of the way Lance is with Keith’s best friend and possibly his new friend.

            When his eyes gaze back towards the front, he remembers the day dream from yesterday. He remembers all the figures from his day dream, only recognizing Shiro’s shadow first. As he thinks on it now, two of the figures remind him of Pidge and Hunk. The other could possibly be Lance but he’d rather not it be that man. Even if he does resemble the spit-fire personality that likes to argue with him. The other two still remain a mystery to him but that’s okay.

            “Psst.” His ear twitches as Pidge tries for his attention. He glances at her and she smirks while passing over a note. “Read. Write. Pass it back,” she orders in a whisper.

            He rolls his eyes at her childishness but takes the note. He reads it and snorts quietly.

**Want to hang out this weekend at the beach? I hear it’s supposed to be nice and the waves will be fun to ride. - Lance**

**Sure! Sounds fun!** **:)** **\- Hunk**

**I’ve nothing better to do, might as well get burned and suffer with the sand. - Pidge**

            He wonders why Pidge passed this to him when he’s not really friends with the other two. Maybe this is her way of saying “GET MORE FRIENDS, EMO BOY!” He sighs with a small smile, taking his pen so he can reply.

**I’ll see if I can come. No promises. – Keith**

            Keith pushes it back towards Pidge. She reads his reply and pouts slightly before giving him a stare that obviously read, “Boy, Imma make you go to the beach and burn with me in the sun.” He snorts, shaking his head as he pays attention to class once more. There were no plans for the weekend thus far so there is no problem. He just isn’t sure if he should go since he doesn’t know Hunk or Lance as well as he knows Pidge. Either way, he will probably get spam messages from the little genius regarding the outing, so he might as well go. Maybe Shiro would like to join them for a change of pace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not beta-ed so there might be mistakes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith goes to work and serves Lotor, a man with a renowned reputation as son of Zarkon, CEO of Galran Enterprises. He also firms up plans with Pidge about going to the beach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I don't really know the personalities of the Blades or majority of the Galran characters. I apologize if I butchered anything.

Pidge: ur coming to the beach, right?

| 

   
  
---|---  
  
 

| 

Keith: Idk. I haven’t talked to Shiro yet.  
  
Pidge: what? need permission? Ur not a kid, Keith.

| 

   
  
Pidge: hunk said he’d like 2 be friends

| 

   
  
Pidge: lance even agreed 2 be civil

| 

   
  
 

| 

Keith: I wanted to have Shiro come too.  
  
Pidge: oh well k that’s fine hope he does lord knows he needs a break btw we talked I’m fine no need 2 worry about me bro

| 

   
  
 

| 

Keith: He needs a girlfriend. He’d probably unwind. And that’s good to hear.  
  
Pidge: lol as if he’d find 1 that’d stay 4 him & him alone

| 

   
  
 

| 

Keith: There’s someone out there. I know it.  
  
Pidge: just like somone1s there for you 2 & don’t say ‘no’ to me cuz imma make it a mission 2 get u some1 to love

| 

   
  
 

| 

Keith: There’d have to be some miracle for me to find a guy. I’m not too worried about it. Just forget playing matchmaker.  
  
Pidge: boy u r going 2 get a bf 1 day … agh brb matt needs me c u this weekend!

| 

   
  
            Keith shakes his head at the texts. A smile appears on his face from Pidge’s stubborn personality and crazy text talk, aka laziness, but he soon frowns. He was planning to ask Shiro during dinner about coming. He hopes the man will say yes but he knows Shiro’s busy all day every day. Shiro tries to make time for Keith but it’s hard some days. With a sigh, Keith stuffs his phone in his pocket and enters Aqueous Blade, the aquarium restaurant he works at part time.

            “Keith, I’m glad you’re here.” A tall man beckons him over before he can head to the back.

            “What’s going on Ulaz?” He heads over without question, gazing at the register on the podium. “Something wrong with the reserved list?”

            “Not at all. I wanted to let you know that you should be wary today.” He glances around himself before whispering to the shorter man. “Lotor is coming in today. We need you to do your best when serving him. You are our favorite server by customer vote and he requested only the best server and chef today.”

            “Right.” Keith sighs, knowing that it’ll be a day of forced smiles. “If I can’t control myself-.”

            “We’ll find you washing the dishes.” Ulaz chuckles. “Yes, of course. Now, go on. He’ll be coming soon.”

            Keith nods and heads into the back changing room. He waves to his coworkers – Kolivan, Regris, and Antok – before entering the locker room. He sees his fellow waiter, Thace, and smiles a little at him.

            “Seems it’s going to be a busy day,” he says for small conversation.

            “Indeed. You better not let your guard down around Lotor, young one.” Thace straightens his tie and apron before turning for the door. He walks by Keith as he changes, patting his shoulder with an encouraging smile. “I know you’ll do well.”

            Keith nods with a small smile, finishing up as he puts the vest on and buttoning himself up. He brushes his fingers through his hair, wrapping his hair with a hairband at the nape of his neck so there’s a small pony tail there. Fresh, dressed, and ready to impress. He hums and stuffs his belongings into his locker before following Thace’s trail.

            The infamous Lotor doesn’t show up until an hour before Keith’s shift is up. Ulaz shows the slender man to his reserved table with the best view of the aquariums around the establishment. Keith waits until Ulaz comes back and motions for him to go. He breathes in, forces a somewhat happy smile, then walks over to the table.

            “Hello, my name is Keith. I’ll be your server for the evening.” He sets down a menu for the corporate man and brings out his note pad, pen at the ready for any orders. “Is there a drink I can start you with?”

            Lotor’s eyes gaze at Keith. They examine him from head to toe, a grin slowly appearing on his face. “Yes. I’d like the finest wine in this establishment. And do bring the bottle out, please.”

            Keith quickly writes that down with a nod. “Alright. I’ll get that for you. If there’s anything else you need, just let me know.” He smiles and heads on back with the order.

            “Does he seem vile like people say?” Regris asks. “His father is a piece of work but people say Lotor’s different.”

            “I just met the guy. I wouldn’t know.” He leans on the counter. “Ordered the best wine bottle.”

            “Of course he did.” The buff man huffs. “Wait there. Better not let him wait for too long.” Regris turns around for the wine cellar underneath the building, mumbling something to the others before heading down.

            Keith waits patiently, checking the time as he goes around to the remaining tables. He checks if there’s anything he can do for them, smiling as kindly as he can. After a run through the tables, he goes back to the counter just as Regris brings out the bottle with a wine glass. The man makes a comment to which Keith smirks at before heading on over to Lotor’s table.

            “Your drink, sir.” He sets the glass down and pops the cork off expertly. “Just tell me when,” he says while pouring the man his drink.

            At nearly half full, Lotor holds his hand up in a stop. “That’s far enough.” Keith backs off and sets the wine bottle on the table as the man grabs the wine glass, lightly swirls the liquid, then sips it. “Marvelous,” he mutters. “Thank you.” He smiles charmingly.

            Keith is unaffected by the charm but smiles back. “Are you ready to order, sir?” He brings back out his notepad and pen.

            “Yes.” Lotor nods, setting the glass down as he picks up the opened menu. His finger slides over the plastic covered paper, soon stopping at the meal he wishes to order. “This one. It sounds delicious. Please have your best chef make this for me.”

            With a nod, Keith lightly takes the menu back after scratching down the order. “Will do.” He smiles again before leaving the man to his wine.

            Over the time of his shift, Lotor doesn’t make many moves. He just drinks his wine, eats his dinner when it comes, even orders some dessert. He keeps Keith over time but the black haired man doesn’t mind. He already texted Shiro that he’d be late coming home and to have dinner without him, which made him frown since he wanted to talk to Shiro about the beach plans. He can’t do anything though. He’ll try to mention it before the weekend comes.

            Soon enough, Lotor finishes and Keith comes over with the check in his pocket but doesn’t pull it out yet. “Is there anything else you would like tonight, or are you all set?”

            Lotor hums in thought. “I believe I’m all set. May I have the bill?”

            Keith wastes no time in giving it to him. The silver-white haired man takes it and stuffs a card in, ready as well. Keith makes his way over to the cash register and punches in the orders, swipes then inserts the card to be read, finalizes the purchase, and prints out the receipts. He walks back over with the booklet for the receipts, another fake smile on his face as he places it down with the card before he starts to head back.

            “One moment, please.” Lotor stops him. The man takes the pen in the booklet and signs each receipt for the merchant and customer copy after putting the total down. “I want to give you something for your time.”

            Keith raises up an eyebrow in interest. He nods, unsure of what the man could possibly want to give him. After Lotor finishes writing everything out, Keith watches him pull out another notebook and a bill. He writes down ten digits onto the paper before ripping it out and placing it with the bill. He offers a hand with both kept by his thumb and Keith hesitantly shakes it.

            “You were a splendid waiter tonight. Very handsome, as well.” Lotor stands with a grin, pulling Keith close to whisper in his ear. “You should work on your fake smiles though. They’re too easy to read.”

            The black haired man flushes, pushing himself away as he scowls at the corporate man. “What are you on about?”

            The pale man laughs. “That face seems better suited to you than a fake smile.” He releases Keith but leaves both notes in the other’s hand. “I hope to see you in the future. I will most certainly come here again and request for you.” He nods as he gathers his things up. “Good night, Keith.”

            As he leaves, Keith stands there gaping like an idiot. First the guy gives a compliment, makes a flirtatious comment, and outs him easily.  _What the hell?_ He even said that he wanted to see him again, which is odd. Keith will admit that Lotor is handsome, too, but there’s something about the guy that screams “playboy” and “user.” No matter who says Lotor is different from his father, something doesn’t sit well in Keith’s gut.

            Then he remembers the notes in his hand. He glances down at the one, an obvious number for him to call – for what reason, he has no idea. It’s not like he will call the number. Under that note is something that causes his mouth to drop, though. A Benjamin Franklin.

            “Holy fucking shit! He tipped me a- What the fuck?!” His surprise gains the attention of the other workers who have yet to leave. Blushing from the realization of dropping the f-bomb twice at work, he quickly heads for the back. “I’ll be heading out now, Ulaz!”

            “All right.” The man goes to lock the door. “See you tomorrow, Kogane.”

            He bids everyone a good night after changing from his work clothes into his casual clothes. Heading on home, Keith thinks just what could have made Lotor tip him with a hundred dollar bill. The man probably meant to grab a ten but accidentally grabbed the other. If so, he probably should return it, but if not, returning it would seem rude. He stresses over the meaning of this whole thing: a number, compliments, flirting,  _a frinkin’ Benjamin!_  He’s never had the pleasure to hold a hundred dollar bill before. All he ever receives are twenties. Maybe a fifty sparingly by luck, but never anything more than that.

            Breathing in and out calmly, Keith soon gets home. Surprisingly enough, Shiro is there waiting for him, sitting at their table with untouched food in front of him. The pure raven haired male panics as he drops everything and goes over to his friend.

            “Shiro?” He lightly lays a hand on the older man’s shoulder. “Hey, you okay?” He ask softly.

            The other man shakes himself out of his reverie, blinking into focus as he looks at Keith. “Keith, you’re home.” At that, he realizes how late it must be and that he just sat there for an hour or more without touching his food. “Oh, welcome back.” He forces a smile as he stands up. “Geez, didn’t think so much time passed.” He picks up the plates and goes to throw them out, too cold and sitting too long to save.

            “Shiro…” Keith calls his name as he trails off, concern written over his face. “Did something happen?” He follows the other around, hovering but at a distance that’s not too invasive. “You usually don’t space out like that unless-.”

            “I’m fine.” Shiro sends a smile Keith’s way, instantly turning back around. “I just lost track of time. No need to worry.” Keith doesn’t believe him and is about to say so, but is interrupted by the older man. “You should grab something to eat quickly before heading to bed. Busy day tomorrow for the both of us.”

            “It’s always a busy day,” Keith states, grabbing Shiro’s arm before he could successfully pass him. “What’s wrong? Is it something to do with your arm? Did you go see Pidge today like you said you would?”

            “Yes I did. She said my mechanics are fine but I should have someone else look into my biologic wears since that’s not up her alley.” He laughs hollowly, lightly shaking off Keith’s hand. “Nothing’s wrong, Keith. If there was a problem, I’d tell you about it just to vent.” His smile turns sincere as he faces his brother like friend. “Like I usually do. I swear I’d tell you.”

            Keith pouts but relents. “Fine.” It’s not like he shares everything with Shiro either but the CEO deserves to get things off his chest more than Keith does. “Before you head to bed, I wanted to ask you something quick.”

            “Is it something you can ask me in the morning?” Shiro smiles apologetically, exhaustion evident on his face.

            The raven haired man stares before looking away and nodding. “I guess.”

            “Okay. I’ll wait in the morning for you to ask me. If we happen to miss each other, just mention at dinner, okay?” Keith nods in reply as he walks over and ruffles the younger man’s hair. “Sorry, Keith.”

            “It’s fine. Just go to bed. You deserve some rest.” He crosses his arms, his usual motion to wall himself in and keep people out as he hunches a little. “I’ll just eat a snack and head to bed.”

            Shiro nods and they separate for the night. Keith still doesn’t feel good about it but lets it be. He grabs a bag of his favorite chips and a drink before heading to his own room, planning to sulk for a bit before he goes to bed. Hopefully he has another nightmare wake him up early in the morning; otherwise he won’t be able to see Shiro until dinner. There’s only two more days until the weekend. He really wants to ask Shiro before the man’s schedule gets loaded or he gets called to a surprise emergency meeting. It always happens. It always seems like he can’t be with his brother like friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not beta-ed so there might be mistakes.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith goes to the gym for his usual routine again and sees Lance. He decides to stay and they have a small get-to-know you session while swimming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lord have mercy on me as I finally compile this chapter together. I had the beginning of it written but didn't finish it until today (11/29/18) when the inspiration hit me. So yeah, gonna try to write more of this now. Eager to slowly get through the beginning chapters of bonding and learning before the real stuff hits. All my plans are swimming back into my focus. I'm excited to write as these guys though I worry over not portraying them good enough. Hope you guys can forgive a person who's only ever written Hetalia since 2012!

            Keith unsuccessfully gets up in the morning, just missing Shiro. He curses as he reads the note on the table for him, Shiro apologizing and promising to hear him at dinner. Pulling out his phone, Keith messages Pidge about Shiro probably not being available since he can’t catch him. He hates being a bother when Shiro’s stressed out and busy, so he’ll just let it be for now. He’ll worry about it if they cross paths again before the weekend.

            Pidge instantly replies stating that he shouldn’t worry. She’ll just message him, like Keith could easily do but is too awkward to, and convince their papa bear to come. The raven haired student chuckles a little as he reads the messages, sighing through his nose as he prepares for another morning routine.

            When at the gym, he finds himself exercising distractedly. His mind and eyes are everywhere, not focused on how many reps he’s done in his sets. He doesn’t realize this until he sees a fellow early gym exerciser giving him an odd look. Flushing, Keith finishes up his set and goes towards the locker room where the pool resides. He sighs once he’s alone in the locker room and switches out of his tank and shorts into his usual swim shorts. Grabbing his towel and wearing his pool sandals, he heads on out towards the pool.

            A splash from the water causes him to stare at the other person who’s there. He mentally groans as Lance swims a lap, not noticing him quite yet. Keith hopes that the other won’t spot him and decides to forgo swimming for today. Unfortunately, it seems the universe has other plans.

            “Good morning, mullet man.” Lance pulls himself up to sit on the side of the pool, grinning up at the other trying to retreat. “Going to avoid being at the pool ‘cause I’m here? So cold, man. So cold.”

            “No,” Keith states before he can think it over. Flushing, he huffs and drops his towel and shucks off his sandals on a free chair before going over to one of the short dive boards. “This is part of my morning routine. I wouldn’t screw it up just because of an immature brat like you.” He sets himself up and bends over, ready to dive.

            Lance pouts with a small scowl. “Yeah, well, it’s not like I’d come around here just to see you anyway.” He crosses his arms. “This is the closest place with a pool to swim in.”

            Not wanting to continue conversation with the tanned man, Keith dives into the water and swims. He propels himself under the water with his feet. Reaching the surface, he begins the freestyle stroke that’s easiest for him to do. Without goggles, he’s unable to see much without his eyes stinging a little from the chlorine, so he doesn’t know if Lance stayed or left. He breathes with every four strokes as quickly as he can and soon turns when he knows he should. Swimming in this pool for years, he knows how long it is and how many strokes he needs to do before turning and boosting off the other wall.

            As he goes on with his lap, he hears a secondary splash in the pool. Opening his eyes just a little bit in the water, Keith sees Lance swimming on the other side of him. He closes his eyes again and swims until he hits the other wall and stops, floating in the water as he breathes in air, wipes the water from his face a little, and watches Lance go. He admires the other, a nagging feeling pulling at him in the back of his mind about how familiar the other’s swimming seems. He shakes his head, banishing the thought as Lance comes to the wall in his lane.

            “Why’d you stop swimming?” Lance asks with his brows furrowed.

            “No reason.” Keith quickly thinks of something. He didn’t know Lance would stick around with him being there. He thought the other would leave after ending the conversation. A small smirk comes to his face as he thinks about possibly racing the other in the pool. “Hey, you wanna race?” He can try to be friendly. Friendly competition is okay. Right?

            Lance raises an eyebrow before smirking. “Sure, but we gotta make a bet. A plain old race is boring.”

            “Fair enough.” Keith nods, brushing his hair back with his watery hand, causing it to slicken and make him look more adult-ish. “What kind of bet?”

             “If I win, you apologize for being a rude jerk the first time we met.” It takes no time at all for Lance to say that.

            The raven haired man sighs with a roll of his eyes. “Whatever. If I win, you have to stop referring to me as ‘mullet’ or similar names. I do have an actual name you can call me.”

            The tanned man rolls his eyes as he chuckles. “Whatever. Let’s start this race.” He pulls himself out of the water and sets himself up on the dive board again.

            Keith follows his example and the two of them ready themselves. Without a third person to shout “GO!” for either of them, they stay in this position for a few seconds. When they eye each other at the same time, Lance chuckles a little and Keith sighs. The black-haired man gets off his board as the other relaxes on his own. Keith puts on his sandals, goes into the locker room where his bag is in his reserved and paid for locker, grabs his phone – which is water proof since he swims constantly, thank the Lord – and returns to the pool. He shucks his sandals off again and sets up a time to blare a horn after thirty seconds.

            “I’ve set up a horn to let us know when to go,” he states as he sets his phone on his towel. He leans over it and presses the start button before quickly going to his board. “Thirty seconds to get ready.”

            Knowing that since he hit the button there would be less time than that, they both set themselves up again and wait for the horn. They breathe in and out, steady rhythms until Keith’s phone sounds off. The two instantly dive in and start their different strokes. Lance swims in a butterfly stroke while Keith does his free style stroke. Since the two never said how many laps to run, they only do one. They both reach the one end of the pool, boost off, and go for the finish. They’re neck and neck even if one is taller than the other. When they hit the wall, they both come up for air and Lance smugly grins at Keith.

            “HA! I won!”

            “No, I was the one who won.”

            “Nu-uh. My hand touched the wall first.”

            “Just because you’re taller and have longer arms than me doesn’t mean that your hand touched first. _I_ hit the wall first.”

            “Yeah, well, if you had your goggles on, you would know that I won.”

            “You don’t even have goggles! You don’t know for sure either! I’m surprised you didn’t hit your head when doing the butterfly stroke!”

            “Hey, I’ve been using that stroke for _years_. I’m not some idiot when it comes to swimming!”

            “Have you won in competitions or meets before?”

            “I’ll have you know that I have!” Lance pulls himself up, scowling down at Keith before he sits on the edge and crosses his arms over his chest. “I’m known as the fastest swimmer where I’m from.”

            Keith rolls his eyes as he hoists himself out as well, sitting on the edge, too, with the diving board between them. “Like I’d believe that without seeing any medals.”

            “Well, have _you_ won any before?” Lance eyes Keith, the fire of competitive rivalry ebbing away slowly and being replaced with genuine wonder.

            The black-haired male’s heart skips a beat as he locks eyes with Lance. He forces himself to look away as he frowns. “No, but I always had the best record in school.”

            “Then you can’t top me on this, Kogane.” Lance grins triumphantly, shaking his head with a small chuckle. “You know, we could always say it’s a tie until we have a third person judging for us.”

            “I know, but still.” Keith huffs a little, smirking slightly as he cools down. “If we just agree on a draw, that means you’ll be calling me stupid names. _And_ I’m not apologizing first.”

            Lance snorts as he laughs. “That’s true.” He begins to turn and stand up from his seated position, offering a hand down for Keith. “Should we just call it a truce for now? We can always fight over the apology at the beach this weekend.”

            Keith takes his hand and stands with the other’s help. He tries to force down a blush from the warmth of Lance’s hand, taking his own away quickly so as to not think about it. “I guess that’s fine for now.”

            “So you are coming this weekend?” Lance doesn’t mention how fast Keith took his hand away from his, seeming to brush it over his shoulder. He grins as he walks over to the locker room’s door. “Do you have class this morning?”

            “It’s still a maybe,” Keith answers stubbornly, gathering up his towel and phone while slipping on his sandals. He wraps his towel around his head to first dry his hair a little as he follows Lance to the locker room. “No, but I have work before my classes in the afternoon.”

            “You work?” Lance goes to a locker, one across from Keith’s, and takes out his own towel to dry up.

            Keith mentally complains about how too coincidental it was for Lance’s locker to be right across from his own. “Yeah. Part-time.” He sits on the bench in the middle of the lane, disregarding that he’s getting it wet from his swim shorts. He ruffles his hair up with the towel, drying it before he goes to dry the rest of himself.

            “Where?”

            “Aqueous Blade. An aquarium restaurant.”

            “Do you serve fish there?” Lance chuckles.

            “Generally, but we server other dishes as well.”

            “Are you a cook?”

            “I wait the tables.” Keith doesn’t mind Lance learning more about him, just general things that aren’t too important to withhold from others. “It’s a reservation only restaurant. It’s also high class so I doubt you’d be able to get in with your mug.”

            The tanned man scoffs, closing his locker once he’s dried enough and changed. “I’ll have you know that I can clean up really good. I can even be regal, like a prince.”

            Keith is unaware of the distant look that appears on Lance’s face as he snorts. “I highly doubt that.”

            “I’ll prove it to you.” Lance’s tone is serious and Keith looks up in time to see something other than the competitive fire. It’s a dark ocean of seriousness. “It may not be soon, but I’ll come by some day. When I’ve saved enough money for one of those meals.”

            Something about Lance’s seriousness makes Keith’s heart speed up its rhythm. “Good luck. We’re pretty pricey.” He starts changing into his clothes, ears turning red as he tries not to be self-conscious of the fact he’s being watched. “And don’t just come to bother me. I need to work like everyone else.”

            The brunet hums and turns his eyes away from Keith to give the other privacy. “Do you work out every morning?”

            “Even on the weekends.”

            “So you’ll probably be here before coming to the beach?”

            “Most likely. And that’s still up in the air.”

            “M’kay.”

            Keith pulls on his shorts and thinks for a moment. “Do you?” He gazes at Lance after grabbing his bag and closing his locker. “I don’t ever remember running into you before. I’ve been doing my morning routine for a long time.”

            Lance shrugs. “I used to do afternoon visits here to swim when I just needed to swim, but it’s always crowded. The guys who lifeguard here mentioned that there’s rarely any morning swimmers, just the one, so I figured I could do morning swims. You must be the only other person to swim in the morning.”

            The black-haired male blushes a little as Lance’s blue eyes gaze at him. “That’s the reason why I like the morning.” He starts walking towards the exit, Lance following him. “I’m the only one here and can mill about, wade in the pool, do whatever I like without anyone rushing me out or annoying me.”

            “Will you change it up because of a plus one?”

            Keith thinks about it as he hoists up his bag strap on his shoulder. “I’d rather not.” He eyes the other, seeing Lance begin to grin. With a scowl, he states, “Don’t think it’s because I like you being around. I can just barely tolerate you as it is.”

            “I don’t know, we’re getting along pretty fine right now.” Lance’s grin widens as he drapes an arm across Keith’s shoulders. “We’ll be pals in no time.”

            “Fat chance,” Keith rolls his eyes as he shrugs off the other’s arm. “Don’t enter my bubble without permission.”

            “Ooo, someone afraid to get cooties?”

            “No, I just have an aversion to physical touches.” Keith scowls.

            “What kind of touches?” The tanned man playfully reaches over to poke Keith’s cheek only for the man to whack his finger away.

            “The kind that’s from people I don’t entirely know or trust.” Annoyance builds up in Keith as his glare intensifies. “Now if you’d excuse me, I have a shift to get to.”

            He separates from Lance but he’s still able to hear the guy’s loud comment from behind him. “Okay! See you on the weekend! And I swear I’ll drop by Aqueous Blade one day! I swear it!”

            A small smile plays on his lips as he ignores Lance, rushing off home to clean up and change. If his mornings where to become filled with a small, irritating yet tolerable bug, he probably would welcome it. Pidge would definitely encourage it so that he gains another friend. If their petty grudge over their first impression dissolves over time, maybe they could even be good friends. Maybe Keith finally can trust another person besides Shiro and the Holts. It’s a nice thought but Keith dismisses it as he feels that’s probably never going to happen.

            He continues about his way from home to work, wondering if maybe Lance will drag him from the gym to the beach on Saturday. He smiles a little more at the image in his head but shakes it away since he knows his stubborn, walled in self will just push the guy away until he most likely relents. Keith hasn’t given anyone a full okay so it’s still possible for him to say no. There’s a feeling inside him, though, that just knows he will say yes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not beta-ed so there might be mistakes.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith comes home and talks with Shiro before losing his cool after bringing up his mother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story started on Tuesday night. The next day was Wednesday so Keith had two days to ask Shiro before the weekend. The previous chapter and this one are all on Thursday. The next one will be a quick thing of Friday before jumping into Saturday where they go to the beach.
> 
> Keith's Schedule:  
> Monday - Classes from 8am - 2pm Work from 3pm to 9pm(Closing)  
> Tuesday - Work from 8am(Opening) - 12pm Classes from 12:30pm to 4pm  
> Wednesday - Classes from 8am - 2pm Work from 3pm to 9pm(Closing)  
> Thursday - Work from 8am(Opening) - 12pm Classes from 12:30pm to 4pm  
> Friday - Work from 8am(Opening) - 2pm Classes from 3pm - 6pm  
> Saturday - Work from 12pm - 4pm No Classes  
> Sunday - Free Day
> 
> That's for me and anyone who's wondering what his schedule is. Also, he works out from 6 am to 7:30 am every morning. He's generally up and walking around 5:45 am and Shiro's always gone to work around 5 am. I know that sounds wicked early, but they're used to it. Keith would take advantage of Sunday being off to sleep in, but it would mess up his body clock and daily flow. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

            “Keith,” Shiro greets the other with a smile when he sees him enter their shared apartment, “I got a message from Pidge.”

            Knowing what the message was already, Keith took off his shoes and meandered to the living room. “So?”

            “Were you going to ask me to come to the beach?” Shiro follows him, watching him put his school bag down. “Is that what you wanted to ask?”

            “Yeah, pretty much.” Keith softly answers as he goes through his bag, searching for the specific paper he wanted to give to Shiro. “Lance invited us out and Pidge basically told me to join.”

            “You’re going, right?” The older man sits next to Keith on the couch, eyes on his brother-like-friend while also glancing at the slightly messy inside of the backpack between Keith’s legs. “It would be good for you if you do. I won’t force you, but you should go.”

            A sigh escapes the pure raven haired male as he nods. “I guess. Everyone seems insistent that I go. Even Lance asked me if I was coming today.” He finally finds the paper and hands it over to Shiro. “I need a guardian type of signature on this thing for some reason. I don’t remember the details but it was passed in class today.”

            Shiro glances over the paper as he takes it. “Is that the same Lance you got into a verbal fight with Tuesday night?”

            “Yeah.” Keith flushes as he remembers Shiro teasing him that night about possibly doing more than just fighting with the guy.

            “So you met him again today?”

            “More like he just happened to be where I usually go.”

            “Oh, so you met at the pool today.” Shiro grins as he glances at Keith. “Just you two alone, huh? You sure you didn’t hit on him when you first met?”

            A full blush appears on Keith’s face. His ears turn red as he shoves Shiro before leaning away and curling up into a ball on the couch. “Knock it off! We just met. I barely know him and-.”

            “You’ve already thought about how good looking he is-.”

            “Oh my god, just  _stop_ ,” Keith begs, covering his face with his hands.

            Shiro can’t contain his laughter as he sets the paper down on his lap. “All right. I’ll let it go.” He hums, waiting for Keith to sit back up after a minute or two to cool down from his embarrassment. “This paper is about a trip that they’re planning to do for a week in the fall semester.”

            “Yeah, I know.” Keith sits cross-legged as he glares at his hands clenching his feet.

            Shiro turns to Keith with a serious stare. “A trip which goes to the Japan Resort run by my rival company, Galra Incorporated.”

            “Mhm.”

            “And this is for extra credit towards your college?”

            “Yep.” He pops the ‘p’.

            “You really think you need this extra credit?” Shiro frowns, worry overrunning his other feelings.

            “I mean, maybe.” Keith shrugs.

            “Keith, are classes okay?”

            “They’re fine.” He brings up his legs and hugs them to his chest.

            “Keith.” Shiro’s tone asks, begs for him to be honest.

            After a moment of silence, he sighs. “I- It’s for another reason, okay?” He doesn’t dare glance at Shiro. “If you’re not going to sign it, then don’t worry about it.” He tries to grab the paper back only for Shiro to pull it out of his reach. “Shiro-.”

            “This is about finding your mother, isn’t it?”

            Keith tenses up, his eyes shimmering as he looks at Shiro. “No, it’s not- You just wouldn’t understand!” His defenses are rising as he stands from the couch and grabs his backpack.

            “Keith,” Shiro stands up and grabs his elbow, “help me understand.”

            “You don’t know what it’s like to be abandoned by a parent not knowing the reasons for why.” He gazes at his brother-like-friend, guilt riddling inside him as he submerges and concedes to the inner turmoil regarding this topic. “When you do, I’ll talk to you.”

            Keith pulls his arm away and goes to his room, shutting the door with a loud  _slam_  behind him. He goes to his desk, dropping his bag next to it while sitting in the chair and booting up his laptop. He goes to check the downloaded chat he has on his computer created by Pidge to see if she’s on. Pidge is, of course. He notices the added two names in his list besides Shiro’s, Matt’s, and hers – BluePaladin and YellowPaladin – wondering who those could be. She must have forcibly added them to his list through her hacking net. He double clicks on Pidge’s username – GreenPaladin – and begins a chat with her.

**RedPaladin: Is it so wrong that I want to look for the parent that abandoned me for closure?**

            He knows this is a big boom to drop right now on her since she only knows little pieces, more so than anyone else. Matt doesn’t even know the whole story. Shiro only knows about it because he took Keith in, with his parent’s consent, after Keith’s father died. Keith instantly notices the “read” update in the chat and then three running miniature red lions pop up to show she’s replying.

**GreenPaladin: Hello and good evening to you, too, Keith. Please give me some more context about this question as I don’t know whether to answer yes or no.**

            The raven-haired student sighs, resting his forehead against his crossed arms on his desk. He probably should tell Pidge about the whole debacle, the whole story that he knows. Bringing up his head, he pulls his chair in so he’s closer to his laptop and begins typing.

**RedPaladin: You know about how my mother just left my dad and I shortly after I was born, right?**

**GreenPaladin: Bits and pieces are coming to me. Yes, I vaguely remember that conversation.**

**RedPaladin: Well, when she left, there was something she left behind with me. It’s this kind of knife with a symbol on it and every time I look at it these days, I just have this feeling eating away at me that she’s still out there.**

**RedPaladin: I want to look for her, ask her why she left, tell her what’s been going on in my life.**

**RedPaladin: Shiro kind of doesn’t want me to do that because…**

**RedPaladin: Idk. He just…seems very against it.**

**GreenPaladin: In my opinion, Shiro would support you in finding her. He’s always been very supportive of you. Even when you came out of that closet you tend to stick close to just in case of emergencies. What gives you the idea he doesn’t?**

**RedPaladin: Well…**

            Another sigh comes out of him as he brushes a hand through his hair. Keith thinks it over, knowing how crazy it is to suddenly go on a trip to Japan. He’d be doing it for extra credit, but he’d also be doing it to begin his search. His father always told him that his mother originated somewhere near Japan. Or was it Southern Korea? He can’t remember now but either way, it’s somewhere in Asia.

**RebPaladin: One of my classes has a professor that’s leading some students over to Japan for a week or two in the fall. I needed to get written consent from a guardian even though I’m over 18. It’s for some “just in case” crap that they do and so that the parents/guardians know what their kid is signing up for.**

**RedPaladin: I gave it to Shiro cuz I wanna go, you know? I’ve always had a feeling I’d find her out there. Out where we originated from. He seemed concerned because I made it seem like I was in need of extra credits, when in fact I’ve got everything I want set up for the science and engineering major I want to do. Then he asked if this was to search for my mother and…**

**RedPaladin: I want to know my mom, Pidge. I’d like to understand her, know why she left me, show her what she’s missed. Is that so wrong?**

**GreenPaladin: No.**

**GreenPaladin: But maybe you should search for her locally before officially signing up for that class. Is there a deadline?**

**RedPaladin: I think we have to sign up before the end of summer. Maybe around August 17 th?**

**GreenPaladin: Good. We have some time then. Think about it for now and don’t sign anything. Start your search locally. Do you know what she looks like? Her name, by any chance?**

            Keith is smiling as he gets help from Pidge. He knows he should have turned to her a long time ago about this. He’s glad she doesn’t mention anything about being hurt when he didn’t. Instead, she lightly jabs at him with a comment stating she could have done this for him easily when she started hacking. It would have been a good experiment for her when she was just starting out. He gives her that, laughing a little.

            After he gives her all the information that he knows about his mother, which is very little since his father barely had anything of hers besides the knife, Pidge brings up another topic.

**GreenPaladin: I think you might have noticed me adding in two new Paladins to our group.**

**RedPaladin: Yeah, who are they?**

**GreenPaladin: Yellow is Hunk and Blue is Lance.**

**RedPaladin: Lance? Really? You added him to this?**

**GreenPaladin: Quit it with that, Keith. I know you don’t mind him.**

**RedPaladin: -_-**

**GreenPaladin: He’s already told us about your pool adventures together. B]**

**RedPaladin: …**

            Keith instantly goes to see if Lance is by chance using the chat as well. He’s on so he double clicks on his username in a small rage.

**RedPaladin: Just what did you tell them about our meeting at the pool?**

**BluePaladin: Hey! Pidge just got done telling me you might send something. Why? What do you think I told her? *innocent***

**RedPaladin: That I somehow /might/ see you as a tolerable friend?**

**BluePaladin: Aww, you do? :3**

**RedPaladin: No! That truce was only for this morning!**

**BluePaladin: You sure?**

**RedPaladin: Yes because until you apologize, I’m going to be insufferable.**

**BluePaladin: Okay then. I guess I can deal with you until you apologize first. *raises eyebrows and grins***

            Keith goes back to Pidge, ranting about Lance while arguing with Lance about little stupid things. He spends the rest of the night with a small half pout half smile on his face, conversing with them. They add him to their chat with Hunk and the four have a grand old time – Hunk and Pidge speaking about classes while Lance tries to get a rise out of Keith. After a few hours, Keith tells them he needs to sign off because of classes in the morning. Everyone says goodnight, he signs off, and he gets ready for bed.

            As he’s changing, a knock raps on his door. “Keith?”

            The violet-eyed man sighs through his nose, knowing he’d be facing Shiro sooner or later. “Yeah?” He decides sooner is better than later.

            “May I come in?”

            “Sure.” He sits on his bed after changing, facing his door as it opens.

            Shiro steps in, frowning as he looks at Keith. “Look, I wanted to apologize. It was…rude of me and inconsiderate to speak like that.”

            “Hey, you shouldn’t be apologizing.” Keith looks at his hands. “I’m the one who’s sorry. I shouldn’t have blown up like that and shoved you away. It’s just…” he trails off, gazing up into Shiro’s gray eyes. “I’d like to know her, Shiro. I want to see if she’s really out there and if she wants to be part of my life or not.”

            Shiro nods as he goes over to his brother-like-friend. He sits down next to him and wraps a comforting arm around him. “I understand. You may think I don’t, but I do, Keith. You know how my parents think of me.” Keith leans into Shiro, remembering how Shiro’s parents told him that he has to run the company if he plans to take care of Keith. Even if he doesn’t like being a CEO, he took the title and job just so he could raise Keith. They’re resigned and cold people. “I’m the one that would have left them, though, if I could.”

            The younger man hums as he thinks, hands clasped together on his lap. “You don’t need to sign it, Shiro. I, uh, talked to Pidge about this and she said I should search locally first.”

            “That’s a good idea. I can even help.”

            “With your busy schedule?” Keith chuckles a  little, grateful for the thought and consideration.

            “Hey, I will always make time for you if it’s truly important. And this is important.” Shiro pats his shoulder before standing up. “Now, it’s time to sleep. You’ll be up all day just like I will. We need the sleep.”

            “Okay, _Dad_.” Keith smiles a little and settles under his blankets.

            Shiro walks to the door and cuts the light, smiling back at Keith. “Good night, Keith.”

            “Good night, Shiro.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The beginning of Saturday with Keith and Lance before they go to the beach.

            Friday comes and goes, a repeat of Wednesday including Lance being at the pool in the morning. The tanned man reminds him about the beach plans, how they’re going to hit some sick waves. Keith merely rolls his eyes as he goes about his routine, leaving with Lance once he’s done like he did on Thursday morning. He doesn’t know if this will be an official thing now, but he thinks over and over how he wouldn’t mind at all.

            Classes zip by and work goes slow. Friday soon turns into Saturday once Keith is home and in his bed. It doesn’t take too long for him to get up and go to the gym at the regular time on Saturdays. Instead of going wicked early, he goes around 10 AM and goes about his morning. When he’s in the pool, he sees Lance pouting with his arms crossed on one of the chairs. The man instantly stands up when he notices Keith.

            “It’s about time you showed up!” He stomps on over, obviously miffed. “Where have you been?! I’ve been waiting all this time-!”

            “For me?” Keith raises an eyebrow at the other.

            Lance flushes with a stutter. “I-I- NO! I wasn’t waiting for you!” He turns with his nose stuck up in the air. “As if I’d wait for you, mullet. It’s not like I was worried about why you’re not in by your usual time or anything.”

            Shaking his head, Keith rolls his eyes and sets his towel down on another chair, lightly kicking off his sandals underneath it. “It’s Saturday. I don’t come in until 10. Same with Sundays.”

            “Well, you never said that before.”

            “You never said you wanted to know.” Keith gazes at the tanned man again, curiosity in his mind. “What’s with wanting to know my schedule?”

            “So I can know when I can pester you.” Lance grins, expertly hiding a blush on his cheeks.

            “And why do you want to pester me?” The raven-haired male walks over to one of the diving boards, putting his goggles on around his neck for now before he officially sets up to dive.

            The brunet hums, biting his bottom lip as he taps his fingers on his arms. “Why? So I can be around when you finally cave in and apologize.”

            “What? And apologizing will make you go away?” He gazes at the other, his violet eyes catch blues before Lance looks down.

            “I’m kind of a parasite. I tend to stick around even when people get sick of me.”

            Keith snorts with a kind smile, putting his goggles on as he sets up to dive. “Whatever, Lance. You’re the one who said you’d deal with me until I apologize. It’s up to you whether you want to stay next to me if I ever do.”

            “And if you don’t, I guess you’ll be the one dealing with me.” Lance steps up onto his own diving board, setting himself up like Keith. “Seems we’re at a standstill.”

            “Seems so.” And Keith jumps off.

            The two swim for a while before getting out so they don’t get waterlogged. They get out and sit in the chairs with their towels on it, relaxing a bit and drying off before going into the locker room. Keith closes his eyes as he lets himself completely relax. He knows why Lance is really there today. To make sure Keith comes to the beach with him. Unfortunately, he won’t be able to go as he has a shift from noon to four.

            “So, you going to the beach?”

            Keith figures he might as well finalize the decision. “Sorry, can’t. I got work.”

            “What?” Lance’s tone sounds surprised and slightly sad. Keith opens an eye to look at him, seeing him frowning. “Who works on the weekends? That’s just lame.”

            “People who need to earn a living,” Keith answers, sitting up as he brings a leg up on the chair for his arm to rest on. “I’ve always got a shift on Saturday. It’s Sunday where I have nothing, usually.”

            “Well, why didn’t you say so? We would’ve planned for Sunday, then.”

            “Why are you so insistent on me going?”

            “Because it’ll be fun, and Pidge mentioned that you need more of that in your life.” A small grin plays on Lance’s lips. “And hey, I’m told that I’m _really_ fun.” He raises his eyebrows in an implying motion but Keith doesn’t get it.

            “Well good for you.” Keith rolls his eyes. “I do have fun, so you know.” He stands up and walks to the locker room.

            Lance gets up and follows him. “Doing what? Homework all day and not getting out?”

            “Yep.” Keith smirks a little. “I’m not just gonna tell you what I really like doing for fun, Lance.”

            “Well, I know you like swimming.”

            “That’s a no-brainer.”

            “I’ll discover what you really like. I swear it.”

            “Just like you swear to come to Aqueous Blade?”

            “Exactly.”

            Keith chuckles a little, shaking his head as he goes to change. “I’ll believe it when I see you on the reserved list.”

            “Who’s to say I’m not on it already?” Lance grins a little as he also changes.

            “Well, I’ll see when I get to work today.”

            “I’m going to tell Pidge about this. I’m surprised she didn’t mention it since she knows you better than I do.”

            “Pidge doesn’t know everything about me,” Keith states, locking his locker up once he’s done. “The only person who knows everything is Shiro, and I doubt you know him.”

            Lance hums, turning around to face Keith once he’s done, too. “I’ve heard Pidge talk about him. He’s the guy that took you in, right?”

            Keith narrows his eyes at the question. “How do you know that?”

            The tanned man shrugs. “Pidge mentioned something about it when I asked how she knows you. Said that her brother and Shiro grew up together and you were added into the mix before she was born since he took you in. It’s just a simple thing, nothing to be too guarded about.”

            The violet-eyed male figures that’s true, but Pidge shouldn’t go around saying anything else. He trusts her but even a little slip up can puncture enough holes to make a wall crumble. Keith decides not to say anything as he gathers his things and leaves the gym. Lance follows him out, sticking with him this time instead of splitting up. Keith doesn’t chase him away as he believes the guy will just come back or follow at a distance anyway. When he’s close to his work, he turns on his heel and glares at Lance.

            “Quit following me.”

            “What? I’m just walking. You happen to be walking the way I need to go.” Lance grins.

            That grin annoys Keith as he rolls his eyes. “You’re not going to fool me, McClain.”

            “Who says I need to do any fooling, Kogane?”

            Keith glares sternly into Lance’s blue eyes. The taller merely continues smirking as he stares back, not looking away. They have this stare down until Keith finally concedes and gazes away.

            “Look, I need to work. Just, leave me alone, okay? I’m sorry I can’t go to the beach.”

            “Hey, it’s cool. I mean, we could always wait until you’re finished with work. There’s no rush, man.” Lance shrugs with an easy-going smile. “Just let one of us know when you’re coming over. I know Shiro will be there since Pidge told us of another plus one. He might be glad if you came instead of just going home.”

            “I’m a plus one, huh?” Keith crosses his arms, disregarding the rest Lance had said.

            “Well yeah, Pidge, Hunk, and I have been a trio for a couple of years now. You’re a plus one. Unless you’d like to be our quadruplet?” Lance’s smile turns into a crooked smirk.

            With a roll of his eyes, Keith shakes his head. “I don’t have enough time to deal with you.”

            “Yes, you do. You just can’t handle all this.” Lance motions to himself and Keith can’t help covering his face with a hand.

            The raven-haired man is doing all he can, holding back a smile as he shakes his head again. “I need to go.”

            As he turns around for work, he hears Lance behind him say, “See you later, Keith! We’ll be waiting at the beach. If I have to, I’ll even pick you up from work.”

            “Don’t you dare, McClain!”

            “I can do what I want, Kogane!” Lance laughs loudly before running off in the opposite direction.

            Keith thinks to himself how Lance really was following him all this time only to turn around when he’s satisfied. He peers over his shoulder and watches the other man go, a small smile on his lips. He then refocuses on the building just ahead, rushing inside since he’s a little late. It’s not like him to be late for work, or anything really since Shiro got that drilled into him. He’ll need to be cautious of the time when spending it with Lance. It seems like time just swims on by as fast as a current in the ocean. He chuckles at the thought, nodding to his co-workers as he clocks in for his four-hour shift on Saturday.

**An Unexpected Tail**

            Lance wasn’t kidding when he said he’d pick Keith up from work just to make sure he comes to the beach. Keith stands in slight shock outside the employee doors on the side of Aqueous Blade, blinking as he takes in the waiting man’s smile.

            “Hey! How was work?” The tanned man greets him with a wave and pushes off the wall he was leaning on, going over to Keith’s side.

            “Are you going to stalk me now?” Keith asks instead, wary of the guy.

            “What? No!” Lance pouts, upset at the notion. “I said I’d be here and I keep my word. I’m here, aren’t I?”

            “Yeah, but…” Keith stares, thoughts jumbling up as he shakes his head. “Never mind. Let’s just go.”

            “Great!” Lance perks up and walks with Keith towards the beach in the town. “So, you going to answer my question?”

            Keith sighs. “Work was fine. Nothing too memorable to share, and I probably wouldn’t share anything even if there was.”

            “Well, it’s good that it was fine.” Lance hums. “Would you like to race to the beach instead of just walking?”

            “You really have a lot of energy to spend, huh?” Keith grins slightly, ready to take on the challenge. “Are we going to make another bet?”

            “Only if it’s not the same ones from last time.” Lance grins right back.

            Keith shrugs, pulling the strap of his bag so the duffel rests completely across his back. “If I win, you have to swear to me that you won’t stalk me.” He’s kidding, of course, but he wants to see Lance’s reaction.

            “Keith, my man, I have already sworn that. Do another bet.” Lance chuckles with a roll of his eyes.

            “Fine.” Keith chuckles as well. “Then if I win…” he trails off, humming in thought. “You have to tell me a few things about yourself. I barely know you yet you’re discovering a hell of a lot more about me each day that passes.”

            A worrisome look crosses Lance’s face for a moment before he smiles again. “Sure. Okay. And if I win, I’ll be burying you under the sandcastle I plan to make.”

            “Like you could build a structural castle.”

            “With Pidge’s help, I could build a life-sized castle.”

            Keith gives him that one. “Having Pidge’s help is cheating.”

            “Fine. We got a deal or not?” He extends a hand towards Keith.

            The black-haired student grins as he shakes Lance’s hand. “Deal. Now, let’s go!” He instantly starts running as soon as he lets go of Lance’s hand.

           “Wha- Hey! That’s cheating!” Lance chases after Keith, gaining up on him quickly and easily.

            “We didn’t say anything about starting off fairly!”

            “You just don’t wanna be buried under my beautiful sandcastle that I plan to build!”

            “You mean your disaster waiting to happen!” Keith laughs.

            “KOGANE!”

            They rush on off towards the beach, Keith feeling a little more alive now. Changes are definitely occurring in his life ever since he met Lance. Whether they’re good or not is up to him, but for now, he’s enjoying it. This guy, this handsome tanned man who says he’s been here for a couple years but Keith has never seen before, is quickly picking away at the wall Keith usually has built up when meeting people. There’s just something about him that makes Keith want to actually be himself for once and not be too cautious of everyone around him. That’s something Keith hasn’t felt in a very long time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not beta-ed so there might be mistakes.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance go to the beach.

            Lance pants as he finishes running, bending over and resting his hands on his knees as he catches his breath. Keith also pants from the long run, a little grin on his face as he stands with no problem. The shorter of them has been working out far longer than Lance, it seems, so he’s fit to run without being exhausted too quickly. As Lance rests, Keith glances over the beach area to see people scattered around. He notices Pidge, Hunk, and Shiro instantly, a little ways off from them, and hums.

            “Guess you have to share some stories about yourself, Lance, ‘cause I won that time.”

            “Frickin’…and their…” Lance mutters to himself, complaining a bit before he stands tall again. He inhales a lung full of air and nods. “Fine. Guess I do owe you that.” He smiles and waves when Hunk waves to them. “Do you have your swim trunks?”

            “Still in my bag,” Keith confirms as he motions to the duffel on his back.

            “How did you win with that weighing you down?” Lance furrows his brows in complete confusion as he starts walking towards their group of friends.

            The raven-haired man shrugs. “I’ve been working out since I moved in with Shiro to his apartment. This weight doesn’t bother me.” He follows the other, smiling a little as he sees his brother-like-friend splashing Pidge in the water. She shrieks before scooping up water in her bucket and sending it his way. This kind of time is what he wishes for. Shiro and their friends, out together and having fun. Doing whatever they want. “Maybe you should do more than just swim.”

            Lance scoffs at the implication. “I’m not weak, Kogane. You just happen to be faster on your feet  _this once_.” He scowls playfully at the other as Keith chuckles. “I’ll beat you next time.”

            “Yeah, yeah.” They finally reach the spot where Hunk is under the umbrella. “I doubt you’ll need to sit under that any longer. The sun’s going to be setting in less than two hours.”

            “Which means a chill will touch the air and you two need to change!” Hunk chuckles. “Go and change so you can have fun with us. We’ve been waiting all day for the two of you to get here.”

            “The both of us?” Keith glances at Lance, who laughs a little like Hunk’s speaking nonsense.

            “I’ve been here! You guys just didn’t notice. I’ve also been running errands.”

            “Uh-huh. Sure.” Hunk rolls his eyes as he shakes his head with a smile. “Just go get changed before Pidge gets wrestled down by Shiro in the water.”

            “NO SHIRO! PUT ME DOWN!”

            “Never!”

            Keith smiles, hearing Lance laugh behind him. “No prob, Hunk, we’ll get changed quick.” Lance pats Keith’s shoulder so they can walk over to the changing stalls. “That Shiro seems to be a fun guy,” the tanned man states.

            “He is, but he can be just as serious when he needs to be.” Keith goes into one of the stalls and pulls out his spare swim shorts he uses on different occasions. His other ones are still at the gym, drying in his locker. “He can be such a six-year-old at times. I’m used to his childishness but there are some days where I just can’t deal with him.” Keith smiles fondly, pulling out his other towel and some flip flops to walk with on the sand. He soon comes out and sees Lance is still changing. “You all right in there, Lance?”

            A _thump_ and a foreign curse word indicates that said man isn’t entirely all right. “Yeah! Just, having some issues with my trunks…” he trails off, muttering more incoherent words. “I’ll be out in a sec! You go ahead of me.”

            “Okay.” Keith raises an eyebrow, shakes his head, and walks over to Hunk. He lays out his towel and sets his duffel bag on it before sitting next to it, glancing out and watching Shiro basically drown their techy friend. “Shiro! Don’t drown her!”

            Shiro looks up when he hears his name, smiling when he sees Keith. “I’d never do such a thing.” He lets Pidge go, who dramatically gasps for air, and gets out of the water. “I’m glad you could come. Lord knows that you need to get out more.”

            As Shiro walks over to him, Keith rolls his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, don’t push it or else I'll change and head home.”

            “Like I’d let you.” Shiro’s eyes glint with mischief as he swoops down and scoops Keith up to hold him fireman style.

            Keith bristles. “Shiro, put me down. This isn’t funny.”

            “Yes it is. You just don’t find it funny because you’re the victim.” Shiro turns on his heel and walks over to the water.

            “Shiro, I know that I love swimming, but that’s because I’m willing to swim when I want.” Keith struggles, gazing pleadingly at the other two that have found sanctuary under the umbrella. He scowls when Hunk just shrugs and Pidge sends her own impish grin. His scowl deepens, knowing full well that Pidge isn’t helping because she’s no longer Shiro’s target. Hunk, on the other hand, is just being a little shit. His eyes soon land on Lance as he finally comes over. “Lance! Get me out of Shiro’s hands!”

            They’re nearly at the water so it might as well be too late, but Lance laughs as he sets his things down. “Sure!”

            Shiro grins as he hears Lance rush up behind him only to turn, bend down, shock the guy as he’s not expecting a reaction, and pick him up like he picked up Keith. His grip tightens around the both of them on his shoulders. “Now that’s not nice, Lance. Attacking someone from behind.”

            “Careful of your arm, Shiro!” Pidge shouts over. “You know how irritating it is when sand gets in the cracks!”

            “I’ll be careful!” He shouts back, turning around again so that he can go at least waist deep into the water.

            Keith gives Lance a look as they’re captives on Shiro’s shoulder. “Some help you are.”

            Lance huffs. “Well forgive me for trying. It’s not like I could predict his movements.”

            “Still, I know for certain Pidge would have done better. If she was willing to help me.” He sent a glare at the girl, who merely grins back at him. He rolls his eyes.

            “Okay, love-birds, time to swim!” Shiro instantly throws them out into the water, not letting Keith or Lance process the name he just called them.

            The cold rush of the salty water connects with Keith so suddenly that his body freaks out. He pushes up for air and instantly rubs his hands against his arms for warmth. He doesn’t dare say that it’s cold but still. The ocean’s water can be pretty damn cold no matter how much sun shines down on it. Lance, on the other hand, splashes back to the top and narrows his eyes at Shiro. He grins, not looking at all put off by the chill of the water.

            “For that, my man, I am going to get my revenge. SPLASH WAR!!” Lance shouts as he sends a cupped wave towards the taller man.

            “You are on!” Shiro laughs, using both his hands to send waves at the other two.

            Keith closes his eyes so the water doesn’t get into them but keeps feeling the water splashing near his way. Their targets may be each other but the majority of the splashes seem directed his way. He forgets how cold the water is and comes up with his own form of attack. As soon as he’s about to act out what he’s thinking, he feels a large amount of water splashed over him. That one was deliberately aimed at him.

            “Come on, Keith, don’t just stand there! I know you like to swim, so swim or join this war with me!” Lance laughs.

            Instead of joining sides, he opts for taking down Lance. “Your fault, McClain!” He sends a splash towards the other, Lance giving a manly shriek as he’s not expecting it.

            “I meant to be on sides and go against Shiro!”

            “You shouldn’t have sent that splash my way then!”

            “How else can one get you out of your head?!”

            “Oh, you’re really asking for it.”

            Keith walks closer to Lance, splashing him with every chance he gets. Lance is laughing, trying to splash back pathetically as he tries to get away from Keith. Funny thing about walking in water; it slows you down. Keith is able to catch up with Lance and basically pounces on the guy so they’re both under water. They come back up for air and keep at their war, trying to splash and dunk each other as many times they can.

            Shiro smiles and walks out of the water towards the other two. He sits beside Pidge, enjoying the sight of his brother-like-friend having fun with someone new. “To think Keith would be this out of his shell already.”

            “I know. It’s disgusting,” Pidge mutters with a mock gag. She shakes her head. “I’m glad that Keith is having fun. He really needs it. Just like you do.”

            “I have more fun than he does.”

            “Corporate meetings at the bar don’t count.”

            “Wait, you go to meetings?” Hunk gazes at Shiro in surprise. “Don’t CEOs or big shots go to those kind of things? How old are you really?”

            Shiro chuckles. “Well, I’m CEO of Shirogane Enterprises, so yeah. I go to those long, boring meetings that basically do nothing.” He doesn’t answer the last question just to keep Hunk guessing.

            “Believe it or not, Hunk, he’s the one that authorizes all those new gadgets that my father and brother build.”

            “No…way.” Hunk eyes turn huge in awe. “Dude, it’s been a dream of mine to work in the engineer department there. I mean, I’d actually like to have a restaurant to cook in, but engineering is just as fun and pays a little better.”

            Shiro hums. “Who knows? Maybe if you apply, I can specifically see what you can do for Shirogane.” Hunk’s jaw drops as the corporate leader grins. “I could even make it where you do engineering for majority of the day until it’s lunch time or an early dinner, and then you can cook for the other workers. I’m sure my employees would love that since our current cook…” he trails off as he laughs lightly, thinking of the old chef that’s lost his touch over the years.

            “I’m still processing that your company has a chef that makes lunch for workers.”

            “Trust me, once you have a tour of their building, you’ll understand how it works.” Pidge snorts in amusement. “They’ve dedicated a whole floor to be the cafeteria. Eating is a priority there.”

            “One must eat and be healthy to be efficient at work,” Shiro states.

            “Can you hire me now?” Hunk’s eyes glisten with hope.

            Shiro laughs good-naturedly. “Finish up college first, Hunk. When you’re a senior, I might just let you intern at the company’s engineering department.”

            “So cool.” Hunk smiles wide, his voice going soft from sheer excitement. “I won’t let you down, Shiro. I’ll work my hardest in college and become one of the best at Shirogane Enterprises!”

            “Are you selling your company off again, Shiro?”

            The three glance up as Keith and Lance come back over to them. Shiro smiles. “Hunk has an interest in my company. I’m just telling him where I could fit him in.” Keith nods before flopping down on his towel. “Did you two have fun?”

            “Keith wasn’t being fair!” Lance pouts as he crosses his arms.

            “You’re just a sore loser.” Keith chuckles.

            “You kept dunking me then splashing my face so I couldn’t see you to splash back!”

            “We can settle this argument later, Lance. At the pool.”

            “Fine, but we need a judge so we know who wins the race next time!” Lance gazes at Hunk and Pidge. “You two should judge us so we know who’s really the fastest at swimming.”

            “I’m not up before 7. Sorry, Lance.” Hunk smiles sheepishly.

            “I have more important things to do than to watch you two swim and increase the tension between yourselves.” Pidge grabs her phone, checking if she’s missed anything from her brother or father.

            Lance glances at Shiro but the business man shakes his head. “I work.”

            The tanned man groans, flopping onto his own towel next to Keith’s. Keith gazes up at him, rolling his eyes as he shakes his head. “We can always ask one of the employees at the gym to judge us.”

            Lance sits on that thought, humming. “True.”

            For the rest of the afternoon into evening the five chat away about different things. They soon change back into their casual clothes and head on home. Pidge leaves the group first when they reach a certain corner. The next corner up Hunk and Lance part ways with the remaining two. Shiro and Keith are the last ones left walking home together.

            The elder man glances down at the other. A grin slowly appears on his face as he sees Keith smiling just a little bit. “So, you sure you don’t-?”

            “Shiro, knock it off.” Keith pouts as he sends a scowl his way. “We’re just friends. He’s nice and a good rival when it comes to challenges, but that’s all it’s going to be. I don’t need any romance in my life.”

            “So you say now,” Shiro starts, that glint in his eyes, “but you’ll soon find out that-.”

            “No, I won’t. My feelings won’t change all that quickly, Shiro. I’m not a hopeless romantic or that desperate for love in my life.”

            Shiro shrugs, chuckling a little. “Suit yourself, but it’s obvious to anyone who looks that Lance is pulled to you. Do you ever wonder why?”

            “He’s only around until one of us apologizes for our rude first encounter.”

            “That’s just an excuse to stick around without a real reason.” The black-haired man with a white tuft for his bangs shakes his head with a sigh. “Kids these days. Not realizing what their feelings really are.”

            “Don’t go saying shit like that, Shiro. You’re not all that much older than us.” Keith doesn’t want to think about Lance being around for anything but an apology. He doesn’t see how anyone could really be in love with him. Sure, people find him handsome and like him because of his looks, but that’s generally it. It’s always face value. Even Lotor seems the kind to go after someone based on their looks. Remembering that strange man makes Keith wonder if he should return that hundred dollar bill he still hasn’t spent. “Anyways, I’m sure that Lance has plenty of girls and guys to go after besides me.” Just like Keith has plenty as well, if he ever bothered to look and try.

            Shiro shrugs again, not pressing the matter. They reach their apartment building and go up the stairs together. The silence is comfortable between them as they reach their home. The two separate for the night, bidding each other sweet dreams, and Saturday for them comes to an end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not beta-ed so there might be mistakes.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith has another dream similar to the one of him being on the ocean. After he wakes up, he decides to visit someone he didn't plan on seeing again outside of his job.

            Keith’s eyes are closed as he listens to the waves. He feels the warm waters caressing the skin on his arms and legs as he rests against the red and white surfboard. He dares not open them in fear of seeing what he saw last time. The sky was beautiful - half day and half night, one half littered with sparkling stars and the other full of cloudy wisps. The stars have always been great to look at, but Keith favored the clouds in the sky. There was just a problem with the side that resembles day.

            That figure swimming towards him from before hasn’t appeared yet. He wonders why only to think it’s possibly because he’s not looking around like he was last time he had this dream. He’s unsure as to how he got control of this dream so suddenly but knows why it probably came back. Just last week he was at the beach with his friends. Being in the water where he knows this dream originates from might have triggered it.

            A splash in the distance makes his ear twitch. So much for his theory of not looking around. He keeps his eyes closed, deciding to ignore it this time. He doesn’t want to react only to be taken under by a gigantic wave filled with sharks. When Keith hears the splash again, it’s closer than before. He feels the urge to look, to see what it really is that’s coming from the day side of this ocean.

            Nothing happens after that second splash for a long while. He waits, expectant of something, anything to happen. No third splash comes. Instead, he hears something emerge from the water beside him as it grasps his hand. The webbed fingers cause him to flinch but he keeps his eyes closed. He desperately wants to glance at the thing beside him, the creature holding his hand in the water.

            Keith hears garbled speech next to his ear. He shivers at the warm breath cascading over his skin, flushing as he feels watery lips press against his temple. The creature speaks again, its voice static but with enough enunciation to discern some common words.

             _“…the…ease…reful…not…worthy…on’t…en…him.”_

            The raven-haired man can only make out certain words or parts of words. He finally opens his eyes, staring up at the sky, realizing that he’s closer to day in this one instead of night. It was half and half before, now the day at least over takes 90% of the sky. He doesn’t turn his head towards the being beside him, merely staring at the clouds above him. The clouds form different kinds of shapes and he takes note of them. A boat. A fish. A hook. Lance.

            Keith shoots up from the surfboard, making sure not to tip over into the water as he sees the cloud formation of Lance’s face. He blinks a few times, disregarding the sensation of him losing the touch of the creature in the water. When he refocuses on the cloud, it now looks like Lotor. He furrows his brows up in confusion. Why was he seeing those two in his dream? Do they connect together with the other cloud formations?

            He finally gazes down at where the creature was next to him only to find it no longer there. He feels himself become swallowed up in confusion until he notices where his surfboard his heading. Keith’s eyes widen as a whirlpool appears in front of him. He lies across the board and tries to fight the current but it’s too late. He gets thrown off his surfboard and submerges in the water. He feels himself being thrashed around in a repetitive motion until he’s thrown out of the current. He doesn’t know how far down he is now but tries to swim up in whatever direction he can.

            When the familiar webbed hands wrap around his waist and pull him close, he feels relief come over him. Keith knows his lungs are about to expend their time limit for holding air but with the help of this creature he might make it in time for some air. He feels the being propel them upwards in the right direction. Muffled sounds of it trying to speak to him are harder to discern in the water. Keith tries to stay awake in this dream for as long as he can be, but it’s difficult. He releases the air in his lungs, taking in water instead of air.

            It’s too late for him now.

**An Unexpected Tail**

            Keith finds himself in front of an extravagant apartment building in the business district of the city he lives in. He glances down at the note in his hand, one with a ten digit number and underneath it a hurriedly scratched address that he added, and sighs. He’s surprised that he even called Lotor but this bill in his pocket has been giving him enough anxiety to the point he’s dreaming about the guy.

            The raven-haired man tries not to remember the entire dream that he woke up from just this morning. Half of it was still blurry to him but he remembers that figure from the day side speaking to him. He remembers being swallowed up in a whirlpool and being saved. He remembers seeing Lotor’s face in the clouds after seeing…

            He shakes his head and presses the button next to the name Montchal. It rings a few times after a buzz. After some seconds tick by, the speaker pops on. “Who is it?”

            Lotor’s voice causes Keith to shiver for some unknown reason. He breathes in to harden his resolve of being here. “It’s Keith.”

            “Ah, the lovely waiter boy. Do come in.”

            Keith flushes as he scowls while the buzzer unlocks the door. He sighs, shaking his head as he goes in and towards the stairs. The corporate son told him he lives on the fifth floor, apartment D. At first it surprised the raven-haired man that he didn’t live in a top floor suite but he shrugged it off as a reason he’ll never know. He reaches the fifth floor and searches for the door with a fancy gold D screwed to it. When he spots it, he walks over and brings a hand to knock on it.

            This is when he pauses. What is he really doing here? He could have just sent the bill back in an envelope with a small note stating, _“Thanks but I don’t need this right now.”_ That would have been rude, even for Keith’s standards of rudeness. Shiro would have been appalled if he found out Keith did something like that. Even if Lotor is working in a rival company, Shiro would say that Keith should have thought more about it and apologize the next time he sees the tall white-haired man.

            Then there could have been just a phone conversation. Instead of asking for the address to come over in person, he could have told Lotor his thoughts. _“Hey, remember when you left me that 100 dollar tip? Yeah, I called to ask if you accidentally gave me the wrong bill? Were you grabbing for a ten, or…? I can return it if that’s so.”_ That would have been better but too informal and uncomfortable for Keith. Keith prefers face-to-face interactions more times than not, so this meeting in person deal is better.

            The problem is that Keith can’t help feeling that Lotor gave his number out for something other than a friendly chat. With the way Lotor’s yellow eyes checked him out, it’s obvious that the man finds Keith appealing to him. That causes several more knots to tie in the raven-haired student’s stomach. It’s bad enough that he gets teased about Lance from Shiro – which the man has promised to stop doing now after seeing how great they are as just friends, so the CEO said – he doesn’t want any misunderstandings when it comes to the Galra, Inc. heir. He stands there, hand raised still, thinking over what everyone would possibly assume and nearly turning on his heel to run.

            Lotor’s door opens before he can even twitch back into his senses of doing just that. “Were you planning to knock today or tomorrow?” The man raises an eyebrow as he grins down at Keith. “You’ve been standing there for how long with your hand raised?”

            Keith flushes, letting his fist drop as he fidgets in his spot. “I, uh, yeah. Today, of course. Planning to knock today.” He curses his stupidity and his horribly planned visit.

            The thin man chuckles deeply in his chest. “Let’s just say you knocked then.” He moves and opens the door further, extending and arm inside his apartment. “Come in. I’ll go grab us a drink. Do you like wine?”

            Lotor walks from the door and heads into an elaborate kitchen, pristine and made with marble counter tops and floor tiles to match. Keith enters the apartment and closes the door behind him, silently gulping down his saliva as he compares his own home to this one. It’s not as small as he thought it would be, the inside being large enough to fit his own apartment plus half of another. It’s spacious with a living room just in front of him, a step down to reach it. To his right is the kitchen with an island that shapes an L formation to separate it from the carpet portion of the apartment. To his left is a short spiral staircase that goes to a loft, most likely where Lotor’s bed is. Under the loft is a mini office set up with bookshelves full of company property and maybe other leisure readings. The wall directly behind the living room is literally just tall windows, and at this point Keith is wondering if he’s truly not in a top floor suite.

           “This is really the fifth floor?”

           Lotor approaches him, wine glasses partially filled in each hand. “Yes. Our floors in this building are slightly taller in height just for the purposes of a loft bedroom being in them. Is it such a surprise that I’m not on the top floor?”

            Keith takes the offered wine glass, staring at the red color as he holds it with both hands. “Kind of. I mean, you’re the heir to Galra, Inc. and filthy stinking rich.” His eyes glance up at the taller man. “A person would obviously think you’d use your money to get the best of the best.”

            The white-haired man smiles with a low chuckle. “My dear Keith, that may be the story when I’m in the same building as my parents, but when I’m alone, I’d like to think I’m a shred more humble than them.” He sips his wine, gazing out towards the windows where he sees half of another building and then the streets below that extend out further into the city. “Not all glorious views can be seen from the very top.”

            Keith stares at the man, not expecting words like that from him. His eyes fall down onto his own glass of wine and he decides to taste it. He’s never tried wine before as he hardly drinks at all, so he’s not ready for the slightly bitter liquid. He cringes as he swallows the portion he sipped. Clenching his eyes shut as he wills the taste away, he hears Lotor chuckle while his free hand lightly takes the glass from Keith. The black-haired man tries not to think about how their fingers brush and how soft Lotor’s skin is.

             “It’s all right if you’re not a fan. It’s an acquired taste.”

            The purple irises Keith have open back up and watch the man down the wine from his glass. He flushes. “Sorry. I’ve never really tried drinking alcohol so much. I’m still in the odd area of being underage, so…” he trails off as his hands go to his sides, thumbs hooking through the loops of his jeans so they have something to hold onto.

             “Like I said, it’s quite all right.” Lotor steps towards the island and sets the empty glass down before heading into the living room. “Come, sit.”

             As the seemingly easy-going man takes a seat on the couch, Keith has a mental battle of whether he should or not. He didn’t really want to stay long. He just wanted to give back the Benjamin with a “thanks but no thanks” that he’s putting together in a polite form. He missed his usual morning routine because of these plans – which Lance was okay with but seemed slightly down about Keith cancelling their usual workout session – so he’d like to make up for it as quickly as possible. Which means he should do what he wants and go.

            Then why is he sitting down on the couch with Lotor? Keith is mentally scolding himself since he can’t get out of this now. He’s going to be spending more time with this handsome man that he’s wary of. Breathing in and dashing away all his worrying feuds, Keith glances at Lotor.

            “I, uh, didn’t really plan to stay long.”

            “Oh?” Lotor presses his lips to the ring of his glass, pausing before he takes a sip. He eyes Keith, causing the man to go rigid with nervousness. “Is that so.” The taller man hums as he sips his wine again, arm moving up so it can rest against the back of the couch. “Why did you really call for a meeting, then?”

            The half American glances at Lotor’s long fingers that are nearly touching his shoulder. “I wanted to return- uh, ask about that tip you left me that day.”

            “Was it too little a tip?” The lithe man turns his head towards the other, shame taking over his facial features. “Of course it was too little. You probably receive more than that from other customers. How foolish of me to think not.” He lurches up, making to stand from the couch. “I shall solve this problem now.”

             “No!” Keith stands up with the other, blocking Lotor from heading anywhere near his wallet. He flushes, hairs on his neck standing as his words fumble out. “It was actually too much. People don’t usually tip me a hundred dollars. If I’m lucky, I’ll get a fifty, but I generally get tens or twenties when serving. I, uh, didn’t- _don’t_ feel comfortable with the hundred you gave me and…wanted to return it, or trade it for a lower amount.”

            Usually Keith can stand his ground and not be a wimp concerning situations like these. If he feels it’s right, it’s right, so he’ll do it. Majority of the time he acts more than thinking, but lately he’s been trying to think more before acting. This whole scene is an uncomfortable happenstance that he got himself into, so he’s kind of a nervous wreck while trying not to look like he’s trembling from uncertainty. He’s probably failing since he’s in the presence of a man who can read people from business experiences.

            Lotor raises his eyebrows up as he eyes the shorter male. “Really? That’s a surprise. Even with your fake smile you still deserve a good tip.” He smiles kindly, trying to reassure Keith he’s not offended in the slightest. “I’m sorry to say that I won’t accept the note back.” He pats Keith’s shoulder, hand slipping to the top part of his arm. “Consider it a gift of good service. No need to worry over it, all right?”

            Keith’s senses implode where Lotor’s hand is on his arm before completely going numb on him. His body is completely tense but he forces himself to smile back and nod. “If that’s okay with you, then yeah.” His reply doesn’t match up with what the other said and he instantly feels a shroud of idiocy come over him. He really needs to leave before he makes himself look more of a fool in front of a rich, hot guy.

            The white-haired man snorts, laughing as he pulls his hand off Keith’s arm to cover the lower part of his face. “Do forgive me, but you are quite adorable when you’re uncomfortable. Did you think I was expecting more from this visit?”

            “Well I- It’s probably- Were you?” His face slowly turns red as he tries to process the conversation correctly.

            “I will admit I was but I’m not disappointed.” The man hums with a crooked grin, finishing off his wine before letting his arm relax as he holds the glass by the top inch with his fingers. “You’re entertaining.”

            If Lotor had reached out and caressed Keith’s cheek, the college student probably would have mentally shut down. Keith breathes in, clenches his eyes shut, and makes himself scowl. “I am not here just to entertain you. I was here for a reason and now that it’s all settled, I’ll just leave.”

            As he turns on his heel towards the door, he hears Lotor chuckle. “There’s that spitfire. You’re more appealing when angered or irritated.”

            Keith’s ears turn red as he makes sure he doesn’t turn around. He reaches the door and holds the doorknob. “Thanks for having me over. Hope I didn’t mess up your daily schedule or anything.”

            “Far from it.” The raven-haired male jumps as Lotor is suddenly behind him, lightly resting his hand on Keith’s before opening the door for him. He grins. “You’ve made my morning fun.” He watches as Keith’s eyes widen before the younger man looks away and steps out of the apartment. “Do call whenever you’d like to visit. Whether it be for talking or other reasons, I don’t mind. Your company is well worth the time to spend.”

            The young college student hunches down as he bolts away from the door and down the stairs. He doesn’t reply, knowing he’d regret any unplanned words that would form and spill out of him if he did. His body shivers after he reaches the ground floor and heads out towards the gym he goes to. The patches of skin where Lotor touched him have a phantom feeling of coldness and he wishes to get rid of the sensation by swimming in the inside heated pool.

            There is no way that he will call or visit that man again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not beta-ed so there might be mistakes.


End file.
